The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-01-12
FARM WORK TOR JANUARY.
THE SUCCESSFUL FARMER, LIKE TIE
SUCCESSFUL GENERAL, MUST EAVE
DEFINITE PLANS.

The Flowing of Hands in Winter.--
tensivc system-.-The Kind of Fees:
70 Give Stock --- The Kind and
Quantity OF Manure that ShOnlt.
be Applied 10 our Lands-.-The
Kind Of Flowers to Csc.
With the beginning of a new year many
Questions press themselves on the farmer
.,ttention. The pitching" of his crops. the
kind and quantity of manure t" he used,
whether homemade manurtS conp8StS or
commercial fertilizers, the modes of pr'par-
ing land; whether it should he turned over,
or broken with ScoOterS, these WIN many
Others come up for p'Ompt and DEFINITE an
SwerS \ good farmer always works TO Il
plan; the more thoroughly 1t is ma;urcd
and arranged. the more economlcilly ana
perfectly he can carry 1t out. He mas ncen
compared to general who plans ctinlill@h.
and the comparison is Il good one. similar
Qualities are demanded in both. Both nave
to make a great many different things work
together to q common end. Now Is the titne
for the farmer to arrange his plans. FROM
>thc very beginning OF the year every lick
that is made should have q direct bc&rin" on
something which follows. He should Know
Just what he is going 10 do. the means at his
command tn do 1t with. and then his con-
stant study should be how to do il in the best
possible manner with the least possible labor.
THE WAY TO BEGIN 4 SUCCESSFUL YEAR.
The first thing for him to decide now is the
"pitching" of his crop. how many acres shall
he cultivate and how shall these be propnr-
toned among the different crops. As land
was almost the only tthng'leit tne iarmer o!
the war. the feeling was general that he must
utilize that to the fullest extent; that he
must cultivate every foot of his onen iand
Greater mistake was never made. Extensive
as opposed to intensive. Turning became the
order of the day, and thousands upon thou
sands of acres have been kept under cuiiiva-
tion which have rot paid The cost of working
them. Have you not done that very thing.
did yon not do il last wear? the question is.
not how many acreS YOU can cultivate with
the stock you have. bat how many yon can
cultivate to most advantage or with greatest
clear profit. Gross receipts are very decep-
tive: net rnceipts tell the true story. The first
thing then to decide is. how many acres on
Your farm will hear cultivation in ordinary
hoed and nlouched crops and pay rcnsona-
ble profit? Each one must recall and scan
closely the history of his farm aud the yields
OF different fields, and then decide the point
for himself; We can only warn agalnst cniEi,
urge the concentration Of labor ana manure
on the most productive acres. Don feel that
YOU are tlamarei by letting good deal "f
your land lie out to rest and recuperatr, ara
don't wait until il is thoroughly worn out be-
TIRE YOU give it chance to rerrperate.
Thoroughly exhausted land recnpcrateS very
slowly; that which is in fair condition VIII
improve rapidly. Many farmers seem 10
tainK they are doing wonderful things for
their lands If they SOW them down in small
grain. forgetting that grain. ike any otnrr
cron, will eventually exhaust land me ricn
wheat lands of the North. which have heen
sown continuously in wheat for n long time.
,o not yield ut prescnt more than half what
they did when fresh. True, cropping WIFI
grain i less sXhanSti"e than the clean cul-
lure of cotton and corn because the soil IS
IeSs liable to wash under grain culture. ana
hrcarsa its humus is not so raritlv exhaust
ed; but it is "N'in'lstng; nevertheless. ana AL
l.,, ,;,t .f,..,SinnulIy tn have olSblutp
r"St--r'st from the plough, rest from the teetA
OF stock
TIE FAR-fER WHO RAISES HIS OWN SUP
PIES IS GENERALLY SUCCESSFUL.
But su?posing the number of acres that Will
bear cultivation with profit to be decided,
how shall tncy he prnTOrIionod am"n" uii-
f.reut crops? The kind of cro!:s raised and
the nature OF the land mast largely contro!
this matter: there Is but one SAFE and gener-
:Lruie which can be laid down. tn" 1armer
must plant enough OF those crops when pro-
dnce home supplies to have abundance OF the
Inter even in quite disastrous years II IS
useless to try to deceive yourselves with
figures Oh tits point. No matter what lgurtS
say. IL you can raiseyour bread ana meat ana
stock f"cd without actual loss, by all means
raise them. Iuu had better learn good deal
over on that side, and raise them even when
YOU seem, in the light of figures, to be losing
some by so doing. strictly cbrrpct nSHrtS
perhaps do not lie, bTt it is q very clhruli
I
visions do cost u farmer. one thlng. now
ever, Is very certain, the men who raise need
ed home supplies are. as rnln. prosperous,
and those who do not very seldom are.
THE BxsT WAY TO FEED OUR STOCK.
One change in farm economy very much
ne.dcd in this connection is the feeding OF
work >toc!i riDre on hay and forage and less
ON grain. This change Is desirable 9th be-
cause it costs less 10 raise forage than grain,
aud because q grain diet is not best for the
health OF animals, particularly when not al
Hard work, and for the additional reason that
forage crops are better for land than the corn
crop. Orr lands have been ScnurScd By con-
tinuous p!owing. and any crops that can give
them rest from the plow ought 10 b" We'c"m-
cd in our rotations. Whenever however.
from stress OF circu instances oats cannot be
successfully grown. aud corn has TO he the
principal grain fnOd for stock, every arrange
ment should be made 10 cultivate inc crop
with broadcast narrowing during early stages
OF yrowth, and with two.horSc culiivaiorS al
terwartls. so as To do away with the necessity
of hoe-wOrk entirely, and bring the cost OIL
production to q minimum. A% stated on lof-
mer occasions, we are INCLINED to think that
some varieties of the Sorghu"l, such as kattlr
corn or early maturing Milo Maize, might
well be substituted for part OF the corn crop.
They are more certain crops on upanQS Ill
dry Seasons nave proved 90 he good morse
food, and are desirable for increasing Inc
variety of food. After food crops are amply
provided for, whatever land remains may Dc
set aside for money crops
THE TRUE WAY TO ENRICH OUR LANDS.
The next question to be dccider: is the kind
and quality of manure 10 10 used. The Griit
OF experiences in late years; has been decidedly
in tne direction Of compOStS. The stable and
lot manure Of the farm, together with us
cotton seed. cOinpOSted with ucld phosphate
and llaiuIt, is at present the most popular fer
tiiIZYr in use. IL i II complete manure On
the sense OF cGntlining everything needed by
p!antS,I nd in many respects one OF the best
Orotortioucd tn1nurcS to be had. II Is adapt
ell TO all crops and most soils. Next to thiS
in completeness and correct proportion o'
ingredients, is Il mixture OF cotton seed Eltai,
acid phosphate and perhaps kaInit. Five
hund:cd pounds OF meal, fifteen hundred
pounds "f acid phosphate and five hundre't
pounds of kaGit make a NrSt-cl;tSS lcriiI!Zrr,
similar to the best ammOniat'd goods, and
may be applied in similar manner aud IN
equal quantities. II regard to the quantities
OF manure which may br applied win great
est profit, much depends on the condi'loa Oh
the soil. III it has been we'll manfred i"r
several years previously, heavier doses may
he applied than when starting with u pHof,
exhausted soil. In other words, rich lant
will take lurse applications OF manure more
kindly than poor lind. On pooi Soils In"dcr
breaking and thorough cultivation enhance
greatly the profits from III inurc. and unic =
:, ftrIn"r is prcprred To carry ont these ciadl
lions fully and faithfully, he had better moi
invest money IN fertilizers.
WHEN TO PLoW-AND HOW WE sHoULI
PLow.
Should land be broken now or later in
spring? The custom nf the country has Eccl
10 com nencc breaking Subtle land iinm"Gl
ately after Christmas. This custom arose ~
part from the practice, before the war. Of cu
y tiva;ing Just as many acres as possible. Ih'
consequence vas if q farmer did not start his
plowS early, he cnHld not get through before